GM's 2005 worldwide sales were the strongest in over 25 years
General Motors sold over 9 million vehicles
worldwide in 2005, surpassing that mark for only the second time in its history (the only other year that this happened
was in 1978). The total of 9.17M vehicles provided a 2% bump from its 2004 numbers.While the company's North American operations continue to suffer, performance in its three other regions of operation - Asia Pacific, Europe, and Latin America/Middle East/Africa - outpaced the markets in those areas, and led to GM selling more vehicles overseas than in the US for the first time ever. Probably the most encouraging news comes from China, where GM became the top foreign automaker last year.
[Source - GM]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
muleboy 12:13PM (12/31/2006)
I don't think it has anything to do with marketing or labor unions. I think it has to do with engineering and political pressure. Ford and GM are quite capable of producing good cars and trucks that will last longer than 5 years and get better gas mileage. But they are not going to, too many of stockholders have a vested interest in the oil industry to think about gas mileage. If they make a vehicle that lasts longer than five years they think demand will go down. The result has been that for the last 15 years or so they have turned out cheaply made gas hogs that fall apart after a little use.
As far as the marketing goes if anything it is the opposite. Anyone remember the "Buy American First" campaigns. Buy American first reguardless of quality, design, or engineering. Doesn't sound like a free market where the best product wins the most customers does it? In fact it sounds a little communist. Domestic auto-makers have had this snowball coming for some time. Let's face us you can BS the American consumer for a very very very long time. But eventually even Americans figure out that someone has had us bent over the hood giving us the shaft for some time.
This release is a joke, they are trying to distract from their numbers back home.
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Glifford 2:13PM (1/16/2006)
Let's hope these resurgent world wide sales help GM recover quickly :)
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Lithous 2:36PM (1/16/2006)
People still don't get it...
U.S. test scores going down = U.S. GM sales going down
World test scores going up = World GM sales going up
Let's learn from the smarter people, can we
America?
Don't forget, there are parts of the world that just hate Americans because of our foreign policy and GM is still doing well outside the U.S. despite the haters.
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Yaroukh 3:02PM (1/16/2006)
I think that what is now happening in US might be nothing but a natural process that is about to happen in every country where domestics rule by tens of percent. In the era of globalization being "domestic" or "foreign" doesn't matter, thus the huge differencies in sales numbers (per maker) will shrink.
So the reason of declining sales doesn't have to be necessarilly because GM/Ford have failed completely.
Just an idea.
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Lithous 3:10PM (1/16/2006)
Not to mention they had to overcome the U.S. (brainwashed) slide in percentage which takes down the world percentage.
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Lithous 3:54PM (1/16/2006)
Not to mention, do you think the Toyota and Hyundai execs were knowledgeable of this GM gain and decided: weak American brainwashed consumers, you must need to know that GM has poor quality. Scare, scare, scare. Run chicken little run.
I called it the f'ing day I read what he said.
Wake up import fanboys, I am your Demming and you are not listening (just like you say GM didn't listen). It is all about myths, over exaggerations and brainwashing that make people go in droves to Toyota. Toyota and Hyundai are trying scare tactics on the consumer now.
I'm not saying by any means that it is over and GM will always stay on top. I'm just saying it all makes sense what is going on around you but you refuse to open your eyes to it. GM is not inept. Not perfect. But not inept.
I said the Toyota exec is worried this taking over #1 wasn't going to happen as fast as he's been telling all his peers and gov't. So he is trying hard to push YOU away from GMs. And it sure looks that way.
Think about the gains outside the U.S. that had to happen since the slide in the U.S., the world's largest single market, were big.
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Glenn Arlt 4:20PM (1/16/2006)
Lithous, you're nothing if not consistent.
Here, I submit, is the reason that so many people are moving to Toyota and Honda (called "the Reliable Two" by this online author).
See the link. You have to get to the very bottom of the article to see anything about GM (appropriate).
http://www.autooninfo.info/NAEd2006012005USAutoSales.htm
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Glenn Arlt 4:27PM (1/16/2006)
OK the link won't go through - try this.
www.autooninfo.com
Then look for "auto news"
Then look for the article titled:
In 2005, U.S. Consumer Shift to Quality Continues at Quickened Pace, But GM and Ford Avoid Disastrous Market Share Plunges with Big Discounts and Huge Financial Losses: Is a Big Three Product Worth a Dime?
By the way, hasn't anyone else figured out where these sales increases came from for GM?
Mostly, CHINA (hey, even a GM car is better than a rickshaw or a bicycle or moped) and the fact that GM is now selling DAEWOO products worldwide as CHEVROLETS.
US sales is still down, down, down. And going down all the time.
GM stuff in the states sucks (gas). Americans are figuring it out and running away from "stupid utility vehicles". Finally.
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Slo_Mo_Shun 4:31PM (1/16/2006)
Lithous, do you even know WHY. GM is doing so well outside of the US? It's because automobiles are considered only transportation in these developing third world countries. These emerging economies were just able to be able to afford cars, so they buy on the basis of transportational use only.
Here in America and other developed nations. We use cars as an symbol of expression of ourselves, we want to be trendy and we tend to buy cars because of how we want others to perceive us, in addition to getting us from point A to B.
I'll bet that once those developing nations get to the point we are at today, (2 cars per household) they'll starting hating GM cars too.
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Jeff Gilleran 4:38PM (1/16/2006)
We all make our own choices.
Nobody "pushes" anyone to do anything.
Open our eyes to what?
That GM is making money everywhere but in the US?
Toyota just happens to be a company that is doing well in the US.
"Brainwashing" is a bit too strong a word.
Do you think GM hasnt been manipulating people for years and manuvering sales around through crap like the "employee discount" and "red tag" events?
Did you see the latest commercial that GM had the most registrations ever for 2005?
Well DUH!
They also sold all of those vehicles for a loss.
And a very large # of those sales were fleet vehicles that rental agencies snapped up because they could profit from them short term.
Id say, given your terminology, that its considered "brainwashing"?
Lets just see what happens in the next year or so.
GM is doing well in China, but it doesnt mean a damn thing here in the US.
When GM fails in the US, but does well elsewhere, what is the point in even bothering to defend GM when they just might stop producing vehicles in the US?
Just wait and see what happens because like all other competitive backdrops, its the company that has the best brains at a finacial level and at a management level that will succeed in any market.
GM's success in china is pretty simple logic.
Its a new market, and they sell cars that people like, as well as they have people that work thier asses off and arent in unions pissing and moaning about the last time they had their hourly 15 minute break or whatever.
Its comparing apples to oranges when you look at overseas operations.
GM is still doing very, very badly in the big picture.
Its not brainwashing, its just obvious fact.
I stopped buying GM because it made crappy products.
That was further emphasized by working as a mangager for 7 years in autoparts sales.
GM is STILL to this day, bread and butter sales for ANY and ALL autoparts stores.
I like import vehicles because I have less problems, not more.
Ive heard that GM quality has improved in the last 5 years in particular, but that doesnt stop the millions upon millions of crappy designed vehicles that are constantly being worked on.
Great for business, but BAD for customers.
I cant even begin to tell you how many people bitched about their GM products.
Imports are where they are because the Domestic automakers decided to cut alot of corners and did so for years.
What Im not saying is that Import vehicles are perfect.
They really arent.
But if you make the comparisons overall, the import cars are the most dependable, and can handle more abuse that almost every Domestic product over the last 20 years in particular.
Each to his own, but I buy based on what other people say, what I read, and what kind of track record a company has.
Not that they made "X" sales over the year.
Its not the delivery of the vehicle that counts.
Its the excecution of how it lasts for the customer and what kind of care and attention to detail that helps you go longer between replacement times that truly matter to me and countless others.
Id buy GM if I could trust them.
I just dont because I got burned twice and was treated like second rate garbage.
Doesnt help when thousands of people over the years tell you what kind of junk GM is either to rub a bit of salt in the wounds.
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Lithous 5:15PM (1/16/2006)
"Lithous, you're nothing if not consistent."
Why thanks for noticing. You are more right than you could know about that statement. I am consistent in showing that EVERY TIME SOMEONE SHOWS A LINK ABOUT BAD GM QUALITY IN COMMENTS ON THIS SITE THE LINK HAS CONSUMER REPORTS (search that link you gave me for Consumer Reports, that says it all) NAME WRITTEN ALL OVER IT, LITERALLY. THEY ARE ALWAYS THE SOURCE. THEY SEND OUT PAPER TO ANYBODY. JD POWERS SENDS THEM OUT TO KNOWN PURCHASERS ABOUT THEIR CARS.
And, Yes, I know how to visit links from this partly functioning site where they bash the big 2 all the time. They, like many, hate that fact that GM's problems only reflect so well the problems we all have and impart on our customers. Just remove the HTML BR tag. It is the comments parser adding it by mistake. Yet they cannot fix it.
BTW, do you know why this and why that, Lithous? Geez, how come if I have an excuse for "why" in a good sense for GM it is ridiculous but when import fanboys have an excuse in the negative sense for GM it is valid?
In other words, I could go all day long telling you why GM is in the position it is with debt and quality over exaggerations (and not out-of-touch, inept and laziness) and you could go around telling me GM has world gains because XYZ. Do my reasons (excuses) make it seem more reasonable why GM is in so much debt? Probably not. Do your reasons (excuses) make it seem more reasonable to import fanboys why GM is gaining world wide and #1 in the world and U.S.? Of course. That is my whole point. Stop taking in the excuses from GMs haters as much as you DON'T take in excuses from GM likers. Call both excuses and have a clear mind when deciding. Until I stop hearing import fanboy excuses I'm not going to stop throwing out my opinion either.
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Toneroo 5:16PM (1/16/2006)
I think the lesson to be learned by GM is that they should bring some of their non-North American cars to North America. It's time to start realizing that North American's taste in cars may not be all that different from Europeans and Asians.
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iQuack 5:36PM (1/16/2006)
GM makes some decent cars that are worth considering. The problem is that the crap they made during the mid 1970s through the mid 1990s drove annoyed GM owners to Toyotas, Hondas, BMWs, and other imports.
Now, GM wants those customers and their children (who are now adults) back.
Why should happy Toyota and Honda owners trust GM now? The point is that GM needs to be BETTER than its competitors, not just as good. And GM certainly isn't there yet. GM sold a flurry of vehicles during heavy discounting last Fall. So, that made GM cheaper, not better.
GM still thinks it's better to offer a deal instead of a car!
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Bill Barnes 6:03PM (1/16/2006)
GM is STILL to this day, bread and butter sales for ANY and ALL autoparts stores.by Jeff Gilleran
While this is mostly true, could this ALSO be due to GM producing 50% of the cars in america for most of the last 100 years? In other words, your customers are more likely to need a GM part than a Ford, DCX or foreign part. (Not that I'm defending GM's quality by any means..just pointing out their larger share of the american market for so long!)
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Ville 6:15PM (1/16/2006)
Yeah, the cars GM sells in Europe are Opels, Vauxhalls, Saabs and Chevrolet-badged Korean Daewoos. But the cars that Toyota sells in Europe aren't Camrys either. Americans and Europeans do want different kinds of cars, as can be evidenced by the consistent market share of french and italian cars that equally consistently always fail when sold in the US. American bestsellers aren't well received or received at all in Europe either.
In Europe GM has been able to respond or even pre-empt new trends, like introducing the hit Zafira MPV and jumping on the Korean bandwagon by selling Daewoos.
However, the american car market is and has been changing and GM has been unable to cope and ultimately it's GM management who are to blame. If they can't handle a little bit of union trouble, they're not worthy of their jobs.
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Lithous 6:16PM (1/16/2006)
Let's see GM magically get out of age old union deals and put Katrina victim amounts of people out of their jobs just so Americans can have some of GM's European cars that in SOME CASES they just think they want because the grass is always greener on the other side. Let's do it overnight, too.
If our bosses could only get out of us what we want from GM. Those with kids work like you don't have any kids (stay late and don't miss work for their doctors appointments or leave early for their games). You are asking GM to change it's ways overnight from this big company that has been necessary to make the U.S. a great economy (GM wasn't the only one but they supply the most cars) by keeping the masses rolling and if they don't drop everything right now (so easily done at that) they are the most inept lazy company ever.
iQuack, start out an absurd amount of money in debt and then try to then make your house look much better than any one's in the neighborhood. You'll need to make cheaper things stretch out.
They could turn around but not if a third or more of America is giving them Terrell Owens style props to the home team. If people have to be vocal freakin' write a letter or submit a form online to GM and tell them how you feel (I'm sure some have with less than stellar results but if more do it that way who knows). Yelling out to the world (instead of them directly) isn't going to help GM make better products or give them a chance with customers on the border of wanting to go with them. That is why I call it brainwashing (sometimes it is by accident) because sometimes there are people totally persuaded away just from what they heard without trying it out themselves.
Just about everyone agrees that T.O. had to go from the Eagles (if you aren't American or a sports fan google it). If T.O. was right on the money with his statements would it have made it right?
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Otto Ngineer 7:04PM (1/16/2006)
The last time GM sold over 9 million was in 1978. That would have been when their sales outside of the US were significantly smaller than now.
If this is such a sign of success, imagine what the sales numbers (worldwide) would be like if 2005 US sales were equal to 1978 US sales and world sales were equal to now...now that would be some bragging numbers!
The quality issues are "real" enough to customers that they select other brands.
Customers have been selecting "other brands" since 1979 (based on the article). The market has been shifting (eroding) for GM the past 26 years. Most of us as auto observers/enthusiasts have watched this same decline and the lack of response from GM for nearly as long.
The only profit GM has made (for well over 10 years) has been through GMAC (which they recently tried to sell, unsuccessfully). On paper, they have been a finance corporation with a sideline in automotive manufacture.
None of this is surprising. Saddening to see an automotive icon stagger and falter, though.
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stratojet 7:38PM (1/16/2006)
"Here in America and other developed nations. We use cars as an symbol of expression of ourselves, we want to be trendy and we tend to buy cars because of how we want others to perceive us, in addition to getting us from point A to B.
I'll bet that once those developing nations get to the point we are at today, (2 cars per household) they'll starting hating GM cars too.
Posted at 4:31PM on Jan 16th 2006 by Slo_Mo_Shun "
You really want to project an image with a Camry or Accord? You have a very depressing perception of yourself! The symbol of well ........... the void and blandness, that is.
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Ritchie 7:48PM (1/16/2006)
The bottom line is GM is still the NO.1 cars sold in the UNITED STATES, so stop hating....
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iQuack 7:49PM (1/16/2006)
Lithous #15:
"iQuack, start out an absurd amount of money in debt and then try to then make your house look much better than any one's in the neighborhood. You'll need to make cheaper things stretch out."
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Say, what? Are you smoking something strange here?
Do you suggest that GM is suddenly in trouble because of some recent turn of events? Nonsense!
GM has been losing market share for over 20 years while imports ate their lunch and GM was too arrogant and stupid to see what was happening to them.
The public's preference for trucks and their SUV offspring saved GM (and Ford, too) for the past 15 years, but that seems to have run its course.
Now that the market is swinging back to cars or so-called "crossover" vehicles that are little more than tall station wagons, GM is short the vehicles it needs to compete. And with respect to cars, why is the new Chevy Cobalt such a bland POS compared with the Honda Civic, Mazda 3, and Toyota Corolla? Didn't GM have an opportunity to create something special in the compact class? And where is the Pontiac G6's 5 speed AT? Oh, there isn't any. And why did GM ruin the image of Saturn with that pathetic ION thing? Who knows what's rattling around in the brainless heads of management at GM?
I'd personally be happier if GM were not in trouble--I remember the days when GM was the envy of the auto industry. But GM lost its way and needs the kind of makeover that was done to fix Nissan.
The unions are much to blame, too. They forced domestic car makers to give them the world or face strike threats. Now the goodies the union workers received are killing the companies that promised what they can no longer deliver. Maybe it's time put more heat on the greedy UAW.
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